https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2018/06/01/southern-baptist-seminary-drops-bombshell-why-paige-patterson-was-fired/?utm_term=.3748717e6d6a
I am
reminded of Dr. King's powerful statement that the moral arc of the universe
sweeps wide, but bends towards justice.
How
do victims of Paige Patterson's wickedness achieve reparations? Do current
leaders of these religious institutions see no similarity between Patterson's
reign of misogyny and sexism and the abuse cases involving Catholic priests and
vulnerable persons?
Expect
some of the leaders to take solace in statutes of limitation which will work to
defeat claims dating beyond three to five years. That answers the legal
liability question for "stale" - the legal term - claims. It does not
address the moral, emotional, physical, and ethical harms inflicted on untold
women and girls at the hands of Patterson and any other persons whose similar
conduct he may have enabled.
The
Southern Baptist Convention and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship convene,
separately and ironically, later this month in Texas. It will be interesting to
observe leaders of both groups try to ignore or play down the crocodiles of
longstanding injustices against women and persons of color (SBC) and persons
who are LGBTQ (CBF) that the world knows and sees in their respective bathtubs.
Those
efforts are doomed to fail. The "nones" - meaning persons who no longer are affiliated with any religion - include a growing influx of
former Baptists. SBC and CBF efforts to stop the bleeding by appealing to black
and Latino clergy and congregations cannot and will not change what the world
already accepts as true about their respective realities: notwithstanding their
pietistic rhetoric and pretensions about "inclusion," SBC and CBF are
merely different manifestations of white religious nationalism, white supremacy, and patriarchy.
Civil
rights activists share a slogan, "No justice. No peace." As
CBF meets later this month in Dallas on the heels of its Illumination Project exercise to apply
pietistic Great Commission makeup on a generation-long history of open bigotry and injustice toward followers of
Jesus who are LGBTQ, CBF leaders should ponder that slogan. They should think
of the Paige Patterson SBC history. They should think about the longstanding
bigotry and injustice CBF has tolerated and continues to empower aganst persons
who are LGBTQ. And, CBF leaders should remember what Dr. King said about the
moral arc of the universe.
Repentance
is a moral and ethical imperative and prerequisite to attaining reconciliation
and doing justice. Unfortunately, it appears that the largest predominantly
white Baptist bodies in the U.S. lack the capacity to perceive and pursue the
urgent imperative of repentance.
That
is not "good news" for victims of injustice.
That
is not "good news" for the world.
It
is merely the latest manifestation of hatefulness masquerading in the costumes
of religion and empire.
Normally I agree with you judge but isn't this pretty much par for the course for all protestants, including Black denominations? Patriarchy, sexism, misogyny, anti LGBT bigotry are staples of traditional Black Christianity in the US. At least it was last time I went to church which was admittedly over 20 years ago. I'm pretty sure it's still the same.
ReplyDeleteWell said. Black Christianity has, sadly, copied from the religion of Jerry Falwell, Billy Graham, and Pat Robertson rather than followed the example of Martin Luther King, Jr., Gardner Taylor, Jeremiah Wright, and Bishop Yvette Flunder.
ReplyDeleteMy observations in this blogpost focused on the Southern Baptist Convention and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship because those are the largest white Baptist bodies and because they are, separately, meeting this week professing their devotion to Jesus and the Great Commission while disregarding injustice in their own houses.